Ramaphosa addresses Simelane, Motsoaledi scandals
President Cyril Ramaphosa yesterday called for ‘time and space’ to deal with Justice Minister Thembi Simelane’s VBS scandal.
Appearing before the NCOP for an oral reply to questions posed by the delegates of the House, Ramaphosa said he is reviewing a detailed report from Simelane regarding a loan she took from a VBS fixer.
DA MP Nicholas Gotsell asked why Simelane is still in his Cabinet if he is committed to building a ‘capable, ethical developmental state’.
News24 reports that Ramaphosa said ‘as soon as the story’ about Simelane arose, he asked her for a full report which he has received.
‘I'd like time and space to look at all of this and examine this and see how we take this forward,’ he said.
Several parties, including GNU members, have either called for Ramaphosa to suspend Simelane, or for her to step aside.
Simelane has been under fire since 26 August, when the joint investigation revealed she had used a ‘commercial loan’ of R575 600 from Gundo Wealth Solutions, owned by Ralliom Razwinane, to buy a coffee shop in Sandton.
At the time, Simelane was the mayor of Polokwane, a municipality that unlawfully invested R349m in VBS, brokered by Gundo.
Article disclaimer: While we have made every effort to ensure the accuracy of this article, it is not intended to provide final legal advice as facts and situations will differ from case to case, and therefore specific legal advice should be sought with a lawyer.
